Pocketknife



Patented dan. 2, i923.

el llli/ehwd GEORGE V. RASMUSSEN, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

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application nled ,July 23,

'o all whom it may concer/n Be it known that @norton V. RasmussnN, a citizen of the United States, and resident of the borough of Richmond; city and State .of New York; have invented certain new and useful improvements in Pocketknives; of'which` the following is specification.

My invention relates to knives of the type commonly known as self-opening, wherein the spring controlled blades are locked in either' closed. or open position.

Knives of this class; as generally made, are provided with locking means adapted to be operated by direct pressure upon the locking member and apt to be unintentionally released when the `knife is carried in the pocket whereby thepossibility exists that the one carrying the knife may be cut or injured` by the accidentally opened blade.

The object of my invention is to overcome these objections by producing a knife of simple construction and operation in which the locking member is released by a sliding action to open the blade of the knife, thereby avoiding the possibility of thel blade being unintentionally released by direct pressure on the locking member.

A further object of my invention is the production of a relatively thin, self-opening knife, the construction of which is reduced to the utmost simplicity and comprises a minimum number of very simple parts. Other more specific objects of my invention will appear from the description hereinafter and the features of novelty will be pointed out in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings, in which l have shown several examples of my invention, Figure 1 illustrates a side View of one vform with the shell or handle removed; Fig. 2 isa front edge view partly broken away, showing one of the blades opened in locked position; Fig. 3 is a side view of one of the linings; Fig. 4l is a side view of the finished knife; Fig. 5 is an enlarged detail of one of the blades; Fig. 6 is a cross-section on the line 5-5 of Fig. 5; Fig. 7 is a perspective view of the operating lever and locking member; Fig. 8 is a side view showing one of the blades in the act of being released; and Figs. 9 and 10 are partial views similar to Fig. 1 illustrating two other forms of construction.

Referring to the drawings and more par- 191s.v serial no. 312,560.

ticularly to Figs. 1 to 8 inclusive, 1 represents theA knife blades havingfshanks-Qprovided with recesses 3 concentric to the blade pivots and rectangular notches or recesses e disposed oppositely thereto and adaptedto receive the tongues of thelocking members l when the blades are in either openy or closed position; shown in Figs, 1;2-a.nd 4. 'The blades are secured between the lining `members and are held in place by meansof the,l shoulder rivets 6 which acts-as pivotsl 'for the blades.

The back 7 is also secured between the lining members by the rivets 8 inthe usual manner. lNithin the knife and near the back 7 thereof is located a double-ended leaf or fly spring 9 held in place about its l hereinafter.

The locking member 11 may be constructed in several dierent ways, for' instance, as indicated in the drawings. `In .the form shown in Figs. 1 to 7, the locking mem- -bers or levers 11. and their actuating parts are made in the form of units which comprise preferably flat strips of spring. metal in surface engagement with the 4linings 5 of the knife and pivoted thereto `by `mea-ns of pins or rivets 12. At one end the levers 11 are provided with lockingV lugs or tongues 13 bent at preferably right angles thereto and projecting through rectagular openings .5a of the linings and into one or the other of the notches or recesses 4 of the blades for thev purpose of locking the blades as hereinbefore described. The other ends of `the locking levers 11 are continued in the form of resilient tongue springs 14 which are maintained under tension vby having their outer `ends abutting againstdugs or pinsy 14a of the linings of the'knife,'for the purpose of maintaining the locking lugs in their normal position as shown, and returning them thereto. The locking levers11 are also provided near the locking ends thereof with linger pieces 15 adapted to project through openings 16 in the shells or handles7 18; of the knife, as shown.

tion, as indicated. The scales or handles of the knife ina be held in place by the rivets or pins 6 anc l0.

` ln Fig. 9 of the drawings, l have shown the locking lever Ill of slightly different shape and provided with a tongue i3 similar to the tongue l2 shown in Figs. l, i?, and 7; inthe form being described, the body portion of the lever lla is shaped or thinned out to form a spring la" which is secured at oneend to the lining by suitable fastening devices such as' rivets 20. The lever llZL is also provided with a linger piece 15 which projects through an opening similar to the openings 16 and likewise formed in the handles of the knife for the purpose hereinbevfore described. In this form the lateral movement of the lever il through the medium of the linger piece l5 and necessary to remove the locking tongue 1S from the recesses l to permit an opening` or closing of the blade, and which is the yequivalent of the pivotal movement of the lever ll, is made possible because of the thinned portion 14h which, in addition, acts as a spring to restore the lever ll to its normal position and to maintain it therein.

In Fig. l0 of the drawings, l have shown still another form of locking lever. In this form the locking lever lib is pivoted at 15 to the lining of the knife and is provided with a locking tongue 13b co-operating withA one of the notches or groei/'es 4; of the blades. The lever 11b in the form being described is provided also ywith a finger piece 15b and with a resilient spring lee forming an integral continuation thereof for the purpose of holding and restoring the lever in and to its normal position. The pin 10 of the knife in this case serves as a bearing for the free end of the spring lll-c. The operation of this forni of locking member is substantiallyr the same as in Fig. l and will be readily understood from the drawings.

With these constructions it is obvious that l can construct a one, two, three or fourbladed knife, as desired, as all the mechanism is confined to one side and one end of the knife.

Various changes in the specific forms shown and described may be made within the scope of the claims without departing from the spirit of my invention.

provided in its shank with an annular recess `concentric with its pivot and with diametric locking recesses opening inwardly into said concentric recess in directions transverse to the length of the blade and parallel with the plane thereof, locking means co-operating with said locking recesses to lock said blade in its open and closed position and a linger piece carried by said locking means and projecting through the handle of the knife, said finger piece being movable within the transverse confines of said handle in a direction transverse to the length of the knife and parallel with the plane of the blade thereof, to correspondingly move said locking means inwardly out of said diametric recesses into said concen tric recess to release the blade.

2. ln a pocket knife or the like,the combination of a spring-actuated, pivoted blade provided in its shank with an annular recess concentric'with its pivot and with diametric locking recesses opening inwardly into said concentric recess' in directions transverse to the length of the blade and parallel to the plane thereof, a locking lever pivotally mounted on the lining of the knife and capable of pivotal movement in a plane parallel with the surface of said lining, said locking lever co-operating with said locking recesses to lock said blade in its open and its closed position, and a finger piece on said lever adapted by pressure in an inward direction with respect to the transverse coniines of the knife and transverse to the length thereof to pivotally move said lever in a corresponding direction out of said locking recesses into said concentric recess to release said blade. y

3. In a pocket knife or the like, the combination of a springactuated, pivoted blade provided, in its shank, with an annular recess concentric with its pivot and with diametric locking recesses opening inwardly into said concentric recess in directions transverse to the length of the blade and parallel to the pla-ne thereof, a lining plate, a lever pivotally movable ina plane parallel with said lining plate and pivotally mounted therein, a locking device carried by said lever and co-operating with said locking recesses to lock said blade in its open and in its closed positions, a spring comprising an Vextension of said lever, a handle provided with a transverse opening located entirelywithin the transverse confines thereof, and a finger piece carried by said 'lever and extending through the opening inv said handle, said linger piece being movable within the opening in a direction transverse to the length of the knife to move said lever in a corresponding direction against the tension of said spring to move said locking device inwardly out of said locking recesses into said concentric recess to release the blade.

4. ln a pocket knife or the like, the combination of a spring-actuated, pivoted blade provided with transverse locking recesses on one side of the shank thereof, said recesses opening at right angles to the length and face of the blade, a. lining plate having an opening in registry with said locking recesses, a spring-actuated lever pivotally mounted upon the lining plate, a locking lug on said lever in registry with said opening and said locking recesses, a handle having a transverse opening, and a finger piece carried on said lever and projecting through said transverse opening in the handle, said locking lug at one end of said lever, projecting at right angles therefrom, said lever having a reduced portion forming a resilient section constituting a spring Whereby the latter may be placed under resilient tension.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set m hand.

y GEORGE V. RASIVIUSSEN. 

